The Miami Dolphins will face the 4–10 Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. The Dolphins will be without quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, as the team announced their decision to bench him in favor of rookie Quinn Ewers. The game was originally slated to be played in prime time, but was flexed out in favor of Ravens-Patriots. The Dolphins-Bengals matchup would have been Miami’s only game of the year on Sunday Night Football.
Fortunately for Dolphins fans, it’s not all bad news for Miami. The Dolphins announced they have opened up the practice window for All-Pro kicker Jason Sanders. Sanders has been sidelined all season with a hip injury.
Head coach Mike McDaniel last spoke of Sanders on December 5, when he said, “(Jason Sanders) hasn’t had a setback. He’s capable of kicking football, but there’s risk of further injury with exertion. You don’t want to do that too soon.”
Dolphins Kickers
In 2024, Sanders made 90.2% of his field goal attempts, his highest mark since his 2020 All-Pro Season. In his absence, the team signed kicker Riley Patterson who has made 92.3% of his field goal attempts this year. However in 2024, Sanders made a career-high 12 field goals of over 50 yards, meanwhile Patterson has only six field goals of over 50 yards in his NFL career.
Sanders has served as the team’s primary kicker since the 2018 season. He had never missed a game prior to this season. He suffered his hip injury prior to the team’s final preseason game. Following the preseason game, head coach Mike McDaniel revealed that he was not concerned about Sanders’ availability for the team’s season opener. Further testing revealed he would be unavailable, and the team initially expected him to miss about a month. His absence has gone on longer than expected as he’s missed all 14 games for the Dolphins this season.
His status for Sunday’s game against the Bengals remains to be seen. The Dolphins signed Riley Patterson on September 29, as he was out of practice squad elevations. Miami may opt to remain with Patterson for the rest of the season and keep Jason Sanders on injured reserve. Sanders is still under contract with the team for the 2026 season, while Patterson will be a free agent following this season.
Dolphins Roster Before Bengals Game
On Monday Night Football, the Dolphins saw Minkah Fitzpatrick go down with a calf injury. His status was deemed to be “week-to-week.” He has not participated in practice this week and is likely going to be ruled out for Sunday’s game. Jordyn Brooks did not participate in practice on Wednesday as he is dealing with a foot/knee issue. Special teams ace Elijah Campbell missed Monday’s game against Pittsburgh and he’s yet to return to practice with the team.
The rest of the team is considerably healthy. De’Von Achane did not suffer a re-aggravation of his rib injury and should be available for the team. The team will likely seek to expand his workload after he carried the ball only 12 times against the Steelers. With Miami starting a rookie quarterback, Achane should be able to help the offense find a rhythm and keep their new quarterback out of third-and-long.
Dolphins Get Good News on All-Pro Before Bengals Game